The town of Natick will consider selling its Natick Neighborhood Bus fleet to the new MetroWest Regional Transit Authority but continue running the buses as a contractor to the Authority.

Natick selectmen discussed the option at the board's meeting Monday night as members try to determine what the town's level of involvement will be with the regional bus system. The board agreed that the town would join the Authority at a meeting last month, but, "joining doesn't necessarily define the level of service that we would negotiate with them," said acting town administrator Martha White.

White said the town will need to settle the issue by July 1, which is when the new RTA is set to begin operation and when the town's new fiscal year begins.

Also at Monday night's meeting, the board re-established a financial planning committee to make long-range recommendations on Natick's financial picture. Natick, which narrowly avoided placing a proposition 2 1/2 override before voters this year, could ask voters for a tax hike as early as next fall.

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